Westfield 5K and Pizza Extravanganza coming July 23

"Thirteen years running and the pizza's still hot. The event just keeps getting better."

By David Lazarus

WESTFIELD — When the Downtown Westfield Corporation’s (DWC) 13th Annual Downtown Westfield 5K & Pizza Extravaganza commences on Wednesday, July 23, at 7 p.m., it will continue its amazing run as one of the largest and most successful races on the New Jersey calendar, with registrations easily north of 2,000 and heading toward 3,000.

Once again registration is only online at PracticeHard.com. There are no processing fees and registration will close at midnight on July 21. Runners can pick up their d-tag scoring chip and Tech shirt (to the first 2,000 entrants) on race day as early as 5 p.m. The first 600 entrants also get an embroidered cap.

Last year the nicknamed ‘pizza run’ attracted 2,433 runners (finishers) and over 6,000 spectators for a night of running, pizza, prizes, and entertainment. The Downtown Westfield 5K & Pizza Extravaganza showcases the business community and surrounding neighborhoods.

The event would not be possible without the help of generous sponsors. For the fourth year in a row, Trinitas Regional Medical center is the Platinum Sponsor of the event. As the Platinum Sponsor, Trinitas Regional Medical Center staff will be on hand to share information about their award winning hospital and lead the race.

Present at the event will also be Silver and Bronze Sponsors. Barnabas Health - Saint Barnabas Medical Center, City Sports, Stop & Shop, Overlook Medical Center and Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey have returned as Silver Sponsors.

The DWC was formed in 1996, and is the management entity of the Special Improvement District. It is governed by a seven-member board of directors, has two full-time and one part-time staff members, and numerous volunteers serving on Design, Promotion, Economic Development and Organization committees.

The vision of the DWC is for Westfield to be a preferred destination where people want to live, work, and visit. Westfield is also one of 25 designated Main Street Communities in New Jersey, a program of the National Trust’s National Main Street Center.

Information on the latest happenings, even information, and promotional offers from Westfield businesses are available on www.WestfieldToday.com, or follow Downtown Westfield on Twitter.

Since its inception, the Downtown Westfield 5K and Pizza Extravaganza not only promotes health, but has grown into one of the state’s top attended non-corporate road races. Working closely with race organizer On Your Mark Productions, which has managed the race since its inception in 2002, the course will once again use the 2009 course changes.

Pizza and dessert will be provided to all registered runners. Entertainment will be provided by the ever-popular Michael Craig Band with an awards ceremony immediately following the race.

The planning meetings have proceeded for months and everything is in place to make 2014 the biggest Westfield Downtown 5K and Pizza Extravaganza race yet. As word of the upcoming race travels, word of mouth about the race continues to draw runners from all over the metropolitan area; and given current enrollment, the number of runners could break last year’s numbers.

“Enrollment for a lot of races are up however given the mild winter, more training, and the economy has caused many people to take up running, healthier activities, and low cost entertainment activities,” said Race Director Sherry Cronin, who admits the enormity of the race presents its own challenges. With such a large crowd in a constricted area, safety becomes a major consideration.

“We wanted to ensure that all of the runners are safe on the course and a
larger crowd means more volunteers and staff to monitor the race. We have
also communicated with the residents along the race route as we do every
year to ensure that they know when the race will occur in front of their
home,” said Cronin.

“The logistical issues are enormous for a race of that size, Everything is harder including setting up water stops, getting all runners to the start and making sure the registration lines move quickly “said Mark Zenobia, who has been the chief race organizer since its inception and has seen the race grow from its initial size of 950.

After getting off to a quick start in its first few years, the race has evolved into a must attend midsummer event.

“Thirteen years running and the pizza's still hot. The event just keeps getting better,” said Cronin.